Long Beach Architecture: The Unexpected Metropolis (California Architecture and Architects)

Book Description

A fascinating first-time look at one of California's most interesting cities. Beginning with an illustrated essay on the history of the built development of Long Beach, this big and beautifully produced volume also documents one hundred of the city's most important architectural projects, built, unrealized, and demolished, by architects as varied as Julia Morgan, Edward Killingsworth, Greene and Greene, and Raphael Soriano. New and archival photographs, many by masters such as Julius Shulman and Marvin Rand, combine with the fresh and original prose to present a city both familiar and undiscovered. A must for architects, local residents, indeed anyone with curiosity about the urban growth of Southern California.

Customer Reviews:

untitled.......2006-11-11

This work provides a thorough look at the architecture of Long Beach's past, including many sites that no longer exist. It's an historical yet fresh perspective on a city I've visited several times and on a city I now see in a completely different way.

Although I don't live in Long Beach I would think that this would be especially facinating for anybody who does.

informative but ugly.......2006-08-26

This book has a ton of buildings in Long Beach. Some of them aren't very pretty buldings to begin with, but the prose explains their significance well, making up for it. However, the layout, photography, and design of the bok are seriously lacking. While, I think whoever published this book did themselves a huge disservice by not putting some effort into making the work presentable, it is a great collection of information about interesting places in Long Beach.

Great book but...........2005-01-26

A very long over due look at Long Beach. My only complaint is that the address is not listed for buildings no longer there- just "demolished". For those of us who were not around when some of the buildings were, it would be nice to have the former address to to see what has taken the former buildings place. Other than that a great book.

The title of this book says it all - a city about to pop!.......2004-12-07

And the way it's shown and told by the authors keeps all senses open and curious. The only thing I can't decide is if it's a coffee table book, a book to read and shelve or a book to explore with. Whichever way, it's full of history, current and future information regarding the LBC and its strong stance as Los Angeles' right hand wo(man).

Visually, the homes, businesses, halls, bridges, centers, theaters, lofts, apartments and high rises chosen are the book's draw. Stunning architechture from all sorts of times. Each place chosen gets a spread.

Textually, probably one of the strongest points made in the book (from my slant, at least) is the city's ability to survive and prosper. Without this, forward motion seems like it would have been limited to that of a typical metroville. The book points to all sorts of drama the city went through and is still playing with. From it's hay-day to its current hardcore stance, I learned about its cash and about why its diversity is. I'm not a writer but it seems written very well and flows nicely. They even got some props from some big architect heads in the beginning pages.

And talk about drama, the authors even school the city (and give it love, too!) regarding a number of directions that it has taken architecturally in recent years. "All-deco" got heckled. Good, because I live (t)here and we need more chaos. More modernity. More of everything. Not just one style. The authors will have had a hand on this steering wheel if we see change in the city's direction over the coming years.

Aside from its well placed critical stance is a writen attitude of optimisim and growth. A book supporting a city whose ability will soon shine. A little peek into the past allowing us as readers a glimps of the obvious future. A new west coast giant.

There are tons of photos and the text on each page per photo is a quick read. Lots of historical imagery in the beginning that keep a person turning pages. There's this one shot of a loft in the Walker Building that's amazing!!! bah ha!

I suppose the two women who wrote this thick book are vacationing somewhere in Europe sipping chi tea, cause they must have sold a grip. At least in Strong Beach.

But I have one question: Where is Snoop's crib?

Average customer rating:

I

Its good to review our foundation,great book for that!

The best how-to book written by an artist

NOTHING I DID NOT ALREADY KNOW

Not worth your time

The 5 Essentials in Every Powerful Painting
Ramon Kelley
Manufacturer: International Artist Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Painting | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1929834128

Customer Reviews:

I.......2005-09-07

I love this book. I have many art books Schmidt, Johnson, Leffel, and I go back to this basic, clearly written book for inspiration over and over. I am looking forward to his new videos, and think his contemporary realism approach is well articulated and demonstrated. Beautiful pictures, see his portrait book also.

Its good to review our foundation,great book for that!.......2005-07-08

Every artist...from acclaimed to novice,need a book like this on their shelves. I have had many different teachers over the years and I still hit a stumbling block from time to time.Every once in a while I just need to sit down and go over the basics and be reminded of my basic foundation of art to fix a problem.
Ramone Kelley is a phenominal artist and we should all be thankful he has taken the time to write this book for us to learn from.He could be painting for money and not offer us any guidance.Thank you Ramone for sharing your thoughts and techniques! A+

The best how-to book written by an artist.......2005-02-02

Whenever I go to a book store or library, I always search for the best how-to type of books written by artists. Having read many of them, I was sort of disappointed. There are good paintings here and there, but lot of so-so works filled in those books. Then one day I found Ramon Kelley's book and I like every painting in the book! The writing is clear and direct. He is talking about the essentials and the essentials are all I need.

NOTHING I DID NOT ALREADY KNOW.......2004-02-26

IF YOU TAKE THE TIME TO WRITE A BOOK, IT SHOULD CONTAIN CONSTRUCTIVE AND INSTUCTIONAL MATERIAL. THIS BOOK HAS NETHER ONE AND I HOPE TO FIND BOOKS WITH MUCH MUCH BETTER INFORMATION. HOPE THIS HELPS PEOPLE NOT WASTE THEIR MONEY.

Not worth your time.......2004-02-19

This book gives very little help and actually your common sense is just as good. I am an artist and it did NOT help me at all.

Book Description

"Anyone who thinks that the ANC is going to run the government of South Africa is living in Cloud Cuckooland."
--Margaret Thatcher, 1987

Seven years after the British prime minister confidently dismissed the idea of the African National Congress coming to power, Graham Boynton was in Johannesburg for South Africa's first democratic elections. The ANC was about to take over the government after all, and he was "watching the clock run down on white rule."  Boynton, who grew up in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, is a member of the last wave of white Europeans to rule over a fast disintegrating colonial empire, and even though he welcomed the new democracy, he had mixed feelings about the demise of the old order. "The speed, capriciousness, and magnitude of the changes that swept through the continent in the last three decades of the twentieth century and brought us to that night in Johannesburg,"  he writes, "are hard for anyone raised in the orderly, evolving democracies of the West to imagine."

Last Days in Cloud Cuckooland is Boynton's account of the final gasps of white culture on the continent, from the flight of the Belgian refugees from the Congo in 1960 through the first years of Nelson Mandela's presidency in South Africa. In a series of graphic accounts of the human dramas marking this disorderly retreat, he illuminates the complexity and ambiguity of the role of the whites in Africa. They "were never a unified gang of coldhearted supremacists,"  he writes, "any more than the blacks in Africa have been a saintly group of idealists and altruists."

It is an evocative story, and as it unfolds the author is drawn toward a controversial conclusion. If the white colonials did a rather poor job of making Africa work, he argues, then their African successors have done considerably worse. "It was in Africa that my identity was forged,"  Boynton writes. "Somewhere amid the rapid dismemberment of colonial rule, the wars, and the triumph of black nationalism, I became a white African, and will remain so for the rest of my life, wherever I live."  But he will probably not live in Africa, which has been changed forever.

Customer Reviews:

Plunged Into Kafkaland.......2006-05-24

Graham Boynton is a white native of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and here he presents several stories of the end of white minority rule on the continent, as the leftover elite from the era of European colonialism gradually lost power to the black majority. Boynton imparts some interesting information about his native Rhodesia and its final white rulers – knowledge that doesn't appear in too many popular histories, plus some in-depth coverage of the drama of South Africa and the end of Apartheid. Unfortunately, this book just doesn't come together too well. Boynton's vignettes are scattered and detached, resulting in a collection of short reports that don't work as an informative history of the region or its leadership. Side coverage of the famous (in South Africa) story of two mass murderers, and a look at modern wildlife conservation efforts, go off on tangents of dubious usefulness, and Boynton's attempts to tie these topics in to his larger point are unsuccessful. Boynton's writing is also rather inconsistent in tone, and his attitude toward the black and white populations of his homeland (which is most likely common among his compatriots) will also seem very inconsistent to outside readers with an interest in the subject. There is some interesting historical and social knowledge here, though it is doubtful that Boynton has added much to the world's ongoing interpretation of white rule in Africa, along with its end and its long-term effects. [~doomsdayer520~]

Voortrek to nowhere?.......2002-10-03

What a waste of valuable stoutheartedness the story of the Afrikaners is! These incredibly tough pioneers carved a stern Calvinist home for themselves out of native territories and raw bush, survived defeat at the hands of the British Empire at its peak, and hung on to their atavistic racial creed decades after it was abandoned elsewhere in the anglosphere.

In retrospect, the idea of a pluralistic democracy in Zimbabwe was foredoomed, given Africans' historic loyalty to their own tribes. The only example of democracy they saw firsthand was the Anglo-Afrikaner model, which had done them few favors in 350 years. And yet, majority rule swiftly became even worse. One watches current events in the new South Africa with apprehension, fearing a replay of Zimbabwe's slide into post-apartheid chaos.

Boynton honestly sets down his trepidation as lawlessness overtook former police state. He later details the corruption that the new government engaged in, and the reeling in of the press. Could things have possibly come out right?

South Africa and Rhodesia certainly had their chances. Boynton describes his love of his African home, his activist youth which ended with him being smuggled out of Rhodesia, evading arrest, and his homesickness during his exile. He also includes some vignettes about dissenters who were not so fortunate, low class Afrikaner desperadoes, and the fight against poachers on southern Africa's big game preserves. He closes with the quixotic incursion of some diehard Boer irregulars into a neighboring black homeland, in which three were killed. Thankfully, he doesn't try to sum up What It All Means, instead letting the spectacle speak for itself. Whether South Africa can truly become the multi-party democracy everyone hopes for, or if it will become a tribalism-driven dictatorship, is unknowable. But what a long strange trip it's been...

Map to Coming Chaos in Africa.......2002-06-08

Corruption, violence, and AIDS will throw most of Africa which is below the Sahara desert into chaos over the next 10-15 years, this book is an effective guide for it.

Informative and entertaining reading.......2000-10-05

I'm an avid reader of books on southern Africa, and this is one of my favorites -- I'm actually in the process of reading it for a second time. Boynton's stories about 'white Africans' of varying backgrounds come together to form a thorough picture of the decline of white minority rule in Africa from the 1960s to the present. The sections on Rhodesia/Zimbabwe, the author's native country, are of particular interest and value. Boynton's conclusions are controversial, to be sure, but they are refreshingly so, adding a perspective to the debate on Africa's past, present and future that are rarely expressed. If you're interested in the subject, it's well-worth trying to find a copy of this great book.

Somewhat disjointed reflections on Africa's decline.......1999-10-01

I found the book's structure faulty; I did not see why he included some chapters, such as the one on the murdering couple in SA and the Durban movement, which may have seemed important when the author was a student - therefore maybe valuable as a memoir - but certainly irrelevant today.

Boynton may be a "reactionary", but the fact remains that almost all African countries have declined in absolute terms since the end of colonialism. Congo's (ex-Zaire) road system is only 15% of that left by the Belgians in 1960. South Africa is clearly in a process of long-term economic decline. Add the AIDS catastrophe, which is going to wipe out 20% of the population within the next 10 years, and then it is impossible not to realize that something does not quite work in Africa.

Customer Reviews:

Sherman Fighting Prophet.......2004-11-30

This is one of the finest books that I have ever read on the Civil War and I have read dozens. It is insightful, interesting and full of details.
Harl Pike

The General Who Marched To Hell.......2000-02-15

In this works,the author depicted Sherman's temperament and the fighting style.Analyzed the compaigns through Georgia and the Carolinas.

Not your usual Civil War biography.......1999-03-27

Although Lewis seems to be a Sherman fan, he is very fair and is not patronizing. I am impressed with the number of sources Lewis drew upon in his writing. This is a long book and starts slowly, but picks up speed during the Civil War years. This is the first biography I've read about Sherman, and I feel like I "know him" very well. I think ultimately, this is a very good book that serious Civil War buffs should read.

AN EXCELENT STORY ON W.T. SHERMANS LIFE........1998-09-05

THIS BOOK OF LLOYD LEWIS' ON WILLIAM T SHERMAN IS AN EXCELLENT READ. LEWIS MUST HAVE SPENT A LONG TIME RESEARCHING SHERMAN AND HIS FAMILY, HIS LIFE AND TIMES. ANYONE WHO HAS READ THE BOOK WOULD AGREE I AM SURE. SHERMAN WAS AN INDEPENDANT THINKER AND A MAN OF HIGH RESOLVE. HIS CONTRIBUTIONS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS TO RESTORING THE UNION ARE CERTAINLY EVIDENT IN THIS BOOK. ALTHOUGH I AM NOT AN HISTORICAL EXPERT ON THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR, I AM SURE THAT ANYONE WHO READS THIS BOOK WILL BE MORE INFORMED AN EDUCATED ON ITS HISTORICAL ASPECTS AS WELL. LLOYD LEWIS , IN ONE OF THE CHAPTERS REFERS TO "SHERMAN AND HIS INEXHAUSTABLE PEN". AFTER READING THIS NOVEL, YOU WILL FIND ALSO THAT "THE PEN IS MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD". AFTER READING "SHERMAN - THE FIGHTING PROPHET", I FELT LIKE HAD KNOW THE MAN. W.MUNRO

Excellent!.......1998-08-14

The author brings you right into the fight with Sherman. He uses excellent language and descriptive terms. I reccomend this to everyone!

Average customer rating:

Sherman: Fighting Prophet
Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: Harcourt, Brace and Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000EZWOEG

Product Description

Illustrated with reproductions of maps, engravings and photographs

Average customer rating:

Sherman, Fighting Prophet
Lewis L
Manufacturer: Harcourt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 015181905X

Average customer rating:

Sherman Fighting Prophet
Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: HARCOURT BRACE & CO@
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UCHADS

Sherman Fighting Prophet -- 2 volume set

Average customer rating:

Sherman Fighting Prophet -- 2 volume set
Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: Easton Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Leather Bound
ASIN: B000IOXE4M

Average customer rating:

Sherman, Fighting Prophet
Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: Harcourt, Brace and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NWUQN6

Average customer rating:

Sherman: Fighting Prophet, Vols. I & II
Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: THE EASTON PRESS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Leather Bound
ASIN: B000K8EI1Y

Average customer rating:

Sherman: Fighting Prophet
Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: Harcourt, Brace and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000KRYCF2

SHERMAN : Fighting Prophet (LIBRARY OF MILITARY HISTORY, 2 Volume Matched Set)

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SHERMAN : Fighting Prophet (LIBRARY OF MILITARY HISTORY, 2 Volume Matched Set)

Manufacturer: Easton Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Leather Bound
ASIN: B000E24QYU

Sherman Fighting Prophet Vol. 1 & 2, GEORGEOUS SET, Collectors Edition

Average customer rating:

Sherman Fighting Prophet Vol. 1 & 2, GEORGEOUS SET, Collectors Edition
Ribbon Bookmark Sewn Into Book By Publ. ,FORMER OWNER STAMP Back Flyleaf, Satin Moire Endpapers Lloyd Lewis
Manufacturer: Collectors Edition, Easton Press, Conn
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000JD9VXA

Book Description

Between 1830 and 1877, Mormon men and women migrated to Utah in great numbers. During this period, many women stitched heirloom quilts as a symbol of their life's accomplishments. Indexed.

Customer Reviews:

A lovely and educational history of Pioneer Women and their craft........2006-09-03

I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Mormon Pioneer women and the way they created a "heaven on earth" in their early Utah homes through quiltmaking. I would encourage anyone who enjoys LDS Pioneer history to use this book as a great reference guide for inspiration in creating a warm home.

Quilts & Women of the Mormon Migrations are magnificent!.......2001-01-01

This book is a remarkable history of the fabrics used & the styles chosen together with where the women were born, when they stitched the presented treasure, when & where they joined the Latter-Day Saints & when they made the migration westward.

Each quilt, no matter its condition, its purpose or the technical skill, leads to a compelling discovery of previously unknown women's lives. Witness the three lions in a circlet on which has been embroidered the British monarch's motto or the "Star Quilt" of Sage Richards Treharne Jones from Wales who came on her parents' mission, both of whom succumbed along the trail. Or Mary Mortensen Bjork's migration from Denmark & her lively "Crazy Patch Quilt"; or Christina Erika Forsgren Davis from Sweden & her plain & simple "Strip Quilt". Or Betsy Prudence Howard Bullock's "Peter and Paul Quilt" all the way from Bedfordshire, England. Or Matilda Robison King's "Washington Plume" applique on her way from Montgomery County, New York. Many women were members of the same Relief Society & so made several quilts with similar designs.

Mary Bywater Cross has done quilters, pioneers & women in general a profound service by her research, writing about & cataloging these fragile & beautiful works of art & comfort. There is something deeply connective about the fabrics & designs created by these intrepid & enduring women.

A must for anyone who loves quilting & history - do visit my site for my full review & eInterview with this quilt historian as well as other books on quilting.

A Book to Treasure.......2000-08-25

I was looking for a book to pass the time. I got lost for hours in this book and wished it was hundreds of pages more. The photos of the quiltmakers and the quilts are priceless. There is so much historical knowledge in this book, that I feel Mary Bywater Cross should be awarded an honorary doctorate degree in the history of quiltmaking and of the Morman Migration.

Book Description

This book is the first to offer a general discussion on the cupling methods for nonliner problems, and provides all material necessary for an introductory course on the subject. Readers are assumed to have only a basic knowledge of applied functional analysis and partial differential equations at graduate level. This book can be used as an advanced graduate text as well as a reference for specialists working in the areas of partial differential equations, boundary integral equations and scientific computing. This book will be of particular interest to students and researchers in applied mathematics, numerical analysis and partial differential equations.

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